Power and Care in Statutory Social Work with Vulnerable Families

ABSTRACT

Families subject to child protection services are often in a marginalised position with less resources to live up to normative expectations of parenthood. Statutory social workers and parents often hold conflicting views regarding the child’s needs and the family situation, and their relationship is asymmetric leaving the parents with less power to define the situation. This is legitimised in the child’s need for protection and care. However, parents and families can also be vulnerable. Therefore, a core ethical concern is how to act carefully in consideration of different positions and perceptions. In this article, we argue that within such a context of state power and service delivery ethical reflection is crucial, but in a way that makes visible the connection between power and care. Consequently, we offer an analysis of the connection between power and care in statutory social work that captures core ethical, relational and professional dilemmas. This analysis combines notions from care ethics with sociological perspectives on power, conflict, trust, recognition and social suffering, and is illustrated by the case Cecilia and her children. Based on this, we suggest possibilities for care ethics in statutory social work and further research on care and power.

KEYWORDS:

• Care ethics
• statutory social work
• family welfare
• child protection
• child welfare
• power
• conflict
• trust
• care

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 The main study was a comparative case study of social work with vulnerable children and families; with long-term unemployed people; with people with mental health problems and disabilities and in vulnerable marginalised areas (Nissen, Fallov, and Ringø 2018).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Maria Appel Nissen

Maria Appel Nissen (b. 1971) is PhD in sociology and professor of social work at Department of Sociology and Social Work, Aalborg University, Denmark. Her research is concerned with social welfare, social work and social theory primarily based on empirical studies of the practices, forms of knowledge and power in social work with vulnerable families. She has conducted several in depth qualitative studies exploring and conceptualising core aspects of social welfare and social work such as social problems; intervention; power; knowledge; technology; social change; holistic social work; views on human nature and care. These studies are critically linked to forms of governance and regulations of social welfare and social work, and how these are embedded in contemporary social and societal conditions and changes that shape possibilities for social welfare and social work. The purpose of this is to contribute to reflection on and development of social welfare and social work. Nissen is the head of the research group SCOPAS – Shaping concepts, practices and advances in social work and Bachelor of social work at Aalborg University and was recently the Editor-in-Chief of Nordic Social Work Research (2016–19).

Mie Engen

Mie Engen (b. 1975) is PhD in Social Work and associate professor at Department of Sociology and Social Work, Aalborg University. Her research focuses on micro-processes, relations and care in professional social work practices with vulnerable children and families. A particular interest is developing knowledge about, how these local, relational and embodied practices are connected to and influenced by broader societal and political developments and conditions. The aim is to contribute to deep, nuanced and qualitative knowledge about social work in order to enhance critical reflection on the life conditions of people in vulnerable positions and the quality of the help, the society has to offer. She is currently involved in the research project Does Social Work Care? Exploring relational, emotional and embodied practices in social services for vulnerable children and their families headed by professor Maria Appel Nissen. This is a qualitative ethnographic study of practices of care in statutory social work, social work in the home and family treatment. The purpose of the project is to develop contextually sensitive concepts that can contribute to understanding and developing practices, conditions and possibilities of care in social work with vulnerable children and families.